Bronx residents can only fire up the grill not the sky

The sparks are starting to fly this weekend, but authorities warn those vibrant chandeliers of color painting the sky had better not stem from private backyards.

Police say Bronx residents caught with illegal fireworks will be seeing more black, in the form of iron bars, than they will red, white and blue fireworks. Mayor Bloomberg wants citizens to know the crackdown is for their own protection. The mayor says 10 years ago fireworks caused 56 injuries, many of them among children. The mayor went on to say that in 2004, only eight people were hurt, but that is still eight people to many.

The city has set up a non-emergency hotline at 311 for Bronx residents wishing to report illegal fireworks.